The New York Mets have received great results from their pitching staff this season, all things considered. Both the rotation and the bullpen have played a significant role in why the team owns one of the best records in baseball. Right now, though, the group is showing some cracks, and that was on full display in Thursday’s 7-1 loss to the Atlanta Braves.
Clay Holmes hung in there early, managing to work in and out of trouble with men on base. But as the game went on, the Braves were able to cash in on those opportunities. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Holmes gave up a leadoff walk to Matt Olson. He would come around to score on an RBI single from Ozzie Albies. The following inning, Holmes did the same thing to Ronald Acuña Jr., and he’d also wind up scoring on an RBI walk from Drake Baldwin, chasing the Mets’ starter from the game.
Clay Holmes (35) Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Huascar Brazobán dealt with the same struggles as Holmes, allowing four earned runs and three walks in 2/3 of an inning. After holding an early 1-0 lead, the Mets were trailing 7-1 after six innings. With the game getting out of hand, manager Carlos Mendoza went to Justin Hagenman to finish out the contest. The team was hoping to keep him fresh and available to be the bulk guy in Friday’s series opener against the Philadelphia Phillies. Instead, Hagenman was asked to pitch a day earlier.
For a team that is trying to piece it together on the pitching side for the time being, that was far from ideal. Now, Blade Tidwell will take the ball on Friday for his second big league start. With Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea nearing their respective returns from injury, expect plenty of change to the rotation in the coming weeks.
For so much of this season, the starting rotation has exceeded expectations. During this six-game losing streak, however, Mets’ starters have thrown five innings or more twice. That’s not going to get it done.
“The starting pitching, they’ve been so good the whole year pretty much carrying us to this point, you lose guys who have been consistently throwing the ball well and get some bad outings. It happens, we’re going through a rough stretch right now,” Mendoza said.
A lack of command has been a persistent issue for the Mets. On the season, they are walking 3.66 hitters per nine innings. That is the fifth-worst mark in all of baseball. The starting rotation and the bullpen have both struggled in that regard. In the club’s three-game series against the Braves, they gave up 18 walks. That is something that will have to improve if New York wants to remain near the top of the National League as the season progresses.
